Radiator curtain



May 22, 1923. 1,456,170

c. c. WOODBERRY RADIATOR CURTAIN April 1921 Patented May 22, 1923.

TM :i

CHARLES C. WOODBERRY, OF CINCINNATI, OHIO.

RADIATOR com.

Application filed April 2, 1921. Serial No. 458,035.

To all whom it may cmwem Be it known that I, CHARLES. C. Woo- BERRY, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of Cincinnati, in the county of Hamilton and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Radiator Curtains, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to produce a curtain for the front of an automobile radiator, which shall be cheap of manufacture, simple in construction, highly efficient in use and possess a marked degree of utility.

My invention consists essentially in providing a curtain suitably hung and mounted in a canopy, attached to the upper forward part of an automobile radiator and means for pulling the same downover the face of the radiator front to a minimum or maximum degree, or in rolling the curtain u into the canopy entirely, or only partly i desired; the curtain being manipulated by the operator at the front part of the automobile, or seat.

Its various features and advantages will readily become apparent from the following specification. I

In the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification:

Fig. 1, is a side view of the front part of an automobile, showing the radiator, parts broken away and showing my invention in position on the radiator,

Fig. 2, is a front view of an automobile, parts broken away, showing the radiator front with my invention in position thereon,

Fig. 3, is a plan view of the canopy which 1 use in connection with my curtain, and

Fig. 4, is a section on line 44 of Fig. 2, parts in elevation and parts broken away.

In the drawing, the radiator is marked 1, and 2 is art of the frame of the machine and 3 isit e upper part of the chassis, 4 being the front axle and 5 a supporting member. At the front upper part of the radiator 1, I show the usual spout or funnel part 6,- through which the water is poured into the radiator. The spout is provided with a screw cap 7.

The curtain canopy is of an elongated shape and made up of the front bod part 10, top 12 and bottom part 13, usua ly all made integral, being widest atthe middle and taperin ofi' toward the sides or ends and rounde for symmetry and appearance,

and to properly fit the radiator 1 at its forward to part as shown; it may however, be

made 0 any other shape or contour. At the top 12 of the canopy, I place a multiplicity of slots 14 through which-I as a strip of some flexible or soft material so as not to mar the top edge of the radiator and to form a better fitting joint between the canopy and radiator.

At the middle of the canopy, and at the top 12 of the same, I attach a collar art 15, which forms a loop which encircles t e neck or spout 6 of the water intake and forms a band around the same, impinging tightly against and'around the same and kept from turning or displacement by thumb or set screws 16; thus the canopy is held in posi tion and by unscrewing the thumb screws 16, it can be removed as occasion requires. This means of attachment maybe of any other form. The canopy is so attached to the radiator, that, when in position, a narrow space 17 is left for the working of the curtain, this construction prevents dirt, rain, sediment, snow and the like from entering up into the canopy and also protects the curtain.

The curtain is marked 30 and the supporting rod for same 31, which is hung in the canopy being held and supported at each sideat points 32; this curtain rod is usually of the spring operated style although any kind may be used; at the bottom of the curtain, I provide the cross stick 33, to which I atsach the pulleys 34 and 34 one at each s1 e.

On the supporting element 5, I attach bands 35, one of which holds the end of the cord or cable 40 at the point 41, which is the end of said cable and the other band 35 holds the pulley 42. On the frame work 2 back of the radiator 1,-I attach a pulley 43 shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1 and I also attach the hooks as 42; the cable 40 passes over pulley 43 and its free end can be connected on any one of these hooks 42, accordingly, as the curtain 30 is up or down or partly pulled up. These parts or hooks 42 are within reach of the operator of the machine and can be reached at any time and at will. It will be understood, that the curtain can be connected up and operated in any other equivalent manner.

The device is o erated under thefollo'wing conditions an as follows; supposingthe and it is desired to start the engine under these conditions it is desirable to allow as little cold air as possible to enter into the radiator and to keep any heat generated from escaping; so the operator grasps the ring 50 at the end of the cable 40 and pulls the same upwardly, b this action the cable operates over the pul ey 43, pulls the cable over the pulley 42 and over the pulleys 34 and 34 and by this action the curtain 30 is pulled down, inasmuch as the pulleys 34 and 34 are on the curtain itself and the cable stops and is permanently connected at- 41; by thispulling of the cable, the curtain can be pulled down an distance to cover the entire front face of t e radiator or cover it artially. The curtain unwinds on the 1'0 31 as it is being pulled downwardly and when in a position desired the ring 50 is placed in one of the hooks 45, thus holding the curtain in the desired position. When the engine is in proper working condition, or for any other reason, the curtain can be raised by unhooking the ring 50 and allowing the cable to pass back into normal position, which is done by the spring rod or roller 31, upon which the curtain is wound, the same being a spring actuated roller and well known in the art.

It will be seen that this device is simple and readily operated and that it is dependable. The canopy which shields the curtain is so formed that the elements cannot interfere with the proper operation of the curtain, and practically all dirt, dust and sediment are excluded and can not reachthe working parts of the curtain and its roller, except to a slight extent.

It will be seen that no extra construction is necessary to place my device upon an automobile and the automobile need not be especially made ortco'nstructed to receive this device, the samebeing purely an attachment for the purpose intended, although it may be built into the automobile if desired.

While I have shown one specific method.

in carrying m invention into effect, it will said radiator to provide a downwardly opening mouth, a curtain rod rotatably mounted in said canopy, a curtain connected to said rod and adapted to be wound on the rod and unwound to cover said radiator, said curtain being adapted also to move through said mouth, and curtain actuating means connected to the curtain and extending to the dash-board to permit the operator of the vehicle to actuate the same.

2. A combination as claimed in claim 1 in which said canopy conforms to the top portion of the radiator and is provided with detachable means engageable with the filling spout of the radiator.

3. radiator curtain for automobiles, compnsing a canopy fitting over the upper front part of the radiator and means thereon for attaching the same to the water inlet spout of said radiator, said means also capable of bein removed therefrom, a curtain suspended in the lower part of said canopy, said curtain capable of being operated upwardly and downwardly over the front of the radiator, and means for operating said curtain, connected to the latter and extending from said curtain to a point within reach of the operator, said last mentioned means having a free end, and means adapted to'be secured to said free end for holding the latter in various adjusted positions.

4. The combination with the motor vehicle having a radiator, of a canopy conforming to the top portion of the radiator and having a lower edge spaced. from the front of the radiator to provide a downwardly opening mouth, means for detachably securing said canopy to the filling spout of the radiator, a curtain rod rotatabl mounted in said canopy, a curtain woun on said rod and adapted to be moved through said mouth and to cover the front of the radia-' tor, pulleys connected to said curtain, other pulleys mounted on the vehicle, a cable havin one of its ends fixedly secured to the ve icle, said cable extending over the pulleys on the curtain and on the vehicle and having its other end arran ed within reach of the operator of the vehic e, and means for securing the last mentioned end of the cable in various adjusted positions, whereby said curtain may be secured in positions to partially or entirely cover the front of the radiator.

In testimony whereof, I afiix my si ature at Cincinnati, Ohio, this 26th day of March, 1921.

CHARLES C. WOODBERRY. 

